Apparatus for washing vehicle wheels

ABSTRACT

A first conveyor means engages one of the front wheels of a vehicle to convey it along a path of travel until it comes to rest at a wheel washing station with the front wheels positioned adjacent a pair of brush units. The front wheels are then washed with the vehicle in a stationary position by spinning the wheels while in contact with the brush units. The first conveyor means then engages one of the rear wheels of the vehicle and conveys it along the path of travel until the vehicle comes to rest with the rear wheels positioned adjacent the brush units. The rear wheels are then washed by spinning them while in contact with the brush units. The vehicle is then conveyed further along the path of travel away from the wheel washing station by a second conveyor means which engages one of the front wheels of the vehicle.

United States Patent [.51 3,681,805

Shelstad et al. [451 Aug. 8, 1972 [54] APPARATUS FOR WASHING VEHICLEPrimary Examiner-Edward L. Roberts WHEELS Inventors: Richard J.Shelstad, Mequon; James A. Ballo, Elm Grove, both of Wis.

Edick Industries, lnc., Butler, Wis.

March 16, 1970 Assignee:

Filed:

Appl. No.: 19,669

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS Anomey.lohn W. Michael, Gerrit D.Foster. Bayard H. Michael, Paul R. Puemer, Joseph A. Gemignani. Andrew0. Riteris, Daniel Van Dyke and Spencer B. Michael ABSTRACT A firstconveyor means engages one of the front wheels of a vehicle to convey italong a path of travel until it comes to rest at a wheel washing stationwith the front wheels positioned adjacent a pair of brush units. Thefront wheels are then washed with the vehicle in a stationary positionby spinning the wheels while in contact with the brush units. The firstconveyor means then engages one of the rear wheels of the vehicle andconveys it along the path of travel until the vehicle comes to rest withthe rear wheels positioned adjacent the brush units. The rear wheels arethen washed by spinning them while in contact with the brush units. Thevehicle is then conveyed further along the path of travel away from thewheel washing station by a second conveyor means which engages one ofthe front wheels of the vehicle.

11 Claims, 9 Drawing Figures PATENTED AUG 9 I973 suzzrsar APPARATUS FORWASHING VEHICLE WHEELS BACKGROUND OF INVENTION l. Field of InventionThis invention relates to an apparatus for cleaning the wheels of avehicle and is particularly adapted for use in an automatic car washinstallation.

2. Description of Prior Art The conventional approach used in automaticcar wash installations for washing wheels is to provide some kind ofapparatus which makes contact with the sidewalls of the tires as thevehicle is conveyed through the installation. This approach involves theinherent disadvantages of attempting to wash the vehicle wheels as thevehicle itself is moving along the path of travel through the car wash.The object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus whereinthe front and rear wheels are washed while the vehicle is temporarily atrest in a stationary position. This arrangement permits a simplified andless expensive washing apparatus, and, at the same time, provides a morethorough washing operation.

SUMMARY OF INVENTION A first conveyor means adapted for engagement withone of the front wheels will convey the vehicle to a washing stationwhereby the car will assume a first stationary position with the frontwheels positioned for washing by a wheel washing means. The front wheelsare then washed by the wheel washing means which includes a pair ofbrush units which engage the front wheels while the wheels are subjectedto a spinning action. The first conveyor means then again engages one ofthe rear wheels of the vehicle to further convey it to a secondstationary position wherein the rear wheels are positioned for washingby the wheel washing means. The rear wheels are then washed while thecar is in the second stationary position after which a second conveyormeans adapted for engagement with one of the front wheels of the vehicleconveys the vehicle away from the washing station. The operation of thefirst and second conveyor means is synchronized to provide the propertime periods for washing the front and rear wheels respectively.

DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a fragmentary side elevation viewshowing conveyor apparatus employed in the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary top plan view of the wheel washing apparatusemployed in the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a front elevation view of the apparatus shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line 4-4 of FIG. 2; and

FIGS. 5-9 inclusive are partially schematic views showing an automobilein successive positions as it passes through the wheel washingapparatus.

DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENT The apparatus of this invention isparticularly designed for installation in a so-called automatic carwash" wherein a car is washed by a series of automatically controlledwashing and drying operations as it passes through the installation.

While the apparatus of this invention is particularly designed forcleaning the side walls of a car's tires, such invention could be usedwith most any type of wheeled vehicle. Accordingly, in the descriptionand claims that follow, the terms wheel" and "tire" are in someinstances used interchangeably.

The conveyor apparatus (FIG. I) and the wheel and tire washing apparatus(FIGS. 2, 3 and 4) cooperate in a particular manner describedhereinafter to produce the desired results.

Referring first to the conveyor apparatus shown in FIG. I, suchapparatus is comprised of a first or entrance conveyor mechanism 10 anda second or exit conveyor mechanism 12 which operates to move anautomobile or other wheeled vehicle along a predetermined path. Theentrance mechanism 10 is preferably located at the entrance to theautomatic car wash installation and includes at least one drive unitassembly 14 operatively connected to a conveyor drive chain 16.

Chain 16 is mounted in a trench 18 for movement at an elevation belowthe level of a first tire supporting surface 20 on which the car rollsas it enters the car wash installation.

Each drive unit 14 is comprised of a centrally located trolley frame 22which is operatively connected to the drive chain 16 by any suitablearrangement. Each drive unit 14 further includes pairs of tire engagingrollers 24 and 26. The particular construction and operation of driveunits 14 and its associated conveyor mechanism is described in detail inapplication, Ser. No. 770,3 27 filed Oct. 24, I968 and thus will not bedescribed in detail herein.

The exit conveyor mechanism 12 is located adjacent the entrancemechanism 10 in line therewith along the path of travel and includes aplurality of drive unit assemblies 28 operatively connected to aconveyor drive chain 30. Chain 30 is mounted in a trench 32 for movementat an elevation below the level of a second tire supporting surface 34.The construction and operation of drive assemblies 14 and 28 areidentical.

Entrance and exit conveyor mechanisms 10 and 12 are preferably drivenfrom a common source of mechanical power. In the preferred embodimentshown in FIG. 1, the prime mover (not shown) for driving both conveyorsis located at the exit end of the exit conveyor 12 and operates todirectly drive chain 30. Chain 30 is mounted at its right-hand end asviewed in the drawings on a sprocket means 36, the position of which canbe adjusted by a take-up mechanism 38 to compensate for variation in thelength of chain 30 which occurs over its operational life. The maximumtake-up position of sprocket means 36 is shown in dotted lines and isidentified by the reference numeral 36a.

Power is transmitted to conveyor chain 16 by a coupler claim 40 which ismounted on its left-hand end (as shown in FIG. 1) on sprocket means 36and on its righthand end on a sprocket means 42. The entrance conveyorchain 16 is mounted on sprocket means 42 and is thus driven by couplerchain 40 in synchronized relationship with exit conveyor chain 30. Apair of idler sprockets 44 and 46 are provided for coupler chain 40.Sprocket 44 is mounted on a stationary support and sprocket 46 ismounted on the end of a take-up arm 48 which is pivotally supported onits upper end so that as sprocket means 36 is adjusted to the right totake-up on conveyor chain 30, sprocket 46 will swing downwardly toprovide a corresponding amount of take-up in coupler chain 40. Sprocket46 on arm 48 swings downwardly by the force of gravity so that thetake-up adjustment of chain 40 occurs automatically. The maximum take-upposition of sprocket 46 is shown in gated lines and is identified by thereference numeral From the foregoing, it is seen that the drive meansfor both chains 16 and 30 are in effect connected to each other so thatthe movement of one drive chain will at all times be synchronized withthe movement of the other drive chain. As will be explained hereinafter,it is important to the proper operation of the wheel and tire washingapparatus of this invention that the first and second conveyormechanisms and 12 be synchronized one with the other.

The wheel and tire washing apparatus (FIGS. 2, 3 and 4) is comprised ofa pair of movable washing units 58 and 60 mounted on opposite sides ofthe travel path of the car. Since the construction and operation ofunits 58 and 60 are substantially identical only one unit 58 will bedescribed in detail herein.

Unit 58 is comprised of a movable brush assembly 62 and a brushactuating assembly 64 adapted to move the cleaning brush towards andaway from the tire in response to movement of the car on the conveyor.Brush assembly 62 is comprised of a brush member 66 preferably comprisedof stainless steel bristles mounted on a support plate 68 as best shownin FIG. 4.

Actuating assembly 64 is comprised of a pair of pivotally mountedsupport anns 70 and 72 and a tire engaging assembly 74 mounted on theends of arms 70, 72 as best shown in FIG. 2. Support arms 70, 72 arepivotally mounted on the floor by pivot pins 76, 78 and are adapted formovement in a horizontal plane. Assembly 74 is comprised of a pair ofsupport brackets 80 and 82 rigidly fastened to a rod member 84 and atire engaging assembly 86. Member 84 and assembly 86 together withbrackets 80 and 82 form a rigid rectangular structure which moves as aunit. Brackets 80 and 82 are connected to arms 70 and 72 by pivot pins88, 90. The arms are biased to swing inwardly towards the car wheels bya spring 92.

As shown in FIG. 4, brush member 66 of brush assembly 62 is slidablymounted in tire engaging assembly 86 by means of a pair of channelmembers 94, 96 welded or otherwise fastened to top and bottom plates 98,100 of assembly 86. Brush support plate 68 is held in place for slidingengagement with channels 94, 96 by a pair of pins 102, 104 which arefastened to plate 68 and extend between channels 94,96 and are held inassembled position by retaining washers 106,108.

A guide rod 110 for the brush unit 66 is fastened to the back side ofplate 68 and extends between a pair of stationary guide members 112 and114 as shown in FIG. 2. Guide members 112 and 114 are in turn mounted ona mounting plate 116 which is fastened to the floor.

The unit 58 is provided with a bumper wheel 118 to protect against anypossible contact between the brush unit and the car body. An angled tireengaging rod 120 welded or otherwise fastened to unit 74 is provided toproduce the initial actuation of the unit by the moving car.

A pair of wheel spinning rollers 122 and 124 are provided at the tirewashing station. At least one of such rollers (preferably roller 122) isconnected to a prime mover (not shown) such as an electric or hydraulicmotor so that when the wheels of the car come to rest between therollers the wheels can be rotated while in contact with the cleaningbrushes. An inclined transfer plate 128 and in inclined over-roll plate130 are provided to insure proper positioning of the car wheels betweenrollers 122 and 124. A guard bar 132 is provided on the exit end ofassembly 74 to prevent any possibility of damage to the tire valve stemsas the wheels move out of the wheel washing station.

OPERATION As shown in FIG. 5, a car 126 is driven onto first or entranceconveyor 10 where a drive unit assembly 14 moves into contact with therear portion of the left front tire on the car.

The car is then conveyed from the position shown in FIG. 5 to theposition shown in FIG. 6. 1n the FIG. 6 position, the two front tires ofthe car will come to rest between wheel spinning rollers 122 and 124, inwhich position the drive unit assembly 14 will have become disengagedwith the car tire, thus allowing the car to remain stationary withrespect to the conveyor. As the car moves into the FIG. 6 position, itwill be aided in its forward movement by an inclined transfer plate 128as shown in FIG. 1 to transfer the car from the drive unit 14 to therollers 122, 124 and thereby insure movement of the vehicle into thewheel washing station. Also provided is an inclined over-roll plate 130located at the exit of the wheel washing station to prevent the vehiclefrom rolling past the rollers 122, 124 as it moves into the wheelwashing station by the action of transfer plate 128.

The forward movement of the front wheels of the car into the FIG. 6position will cause the front tires to make contact with the tireengaging rods 120 of tire washing units 58 and 60. Such engagement willcause the units to swing forwardly and outwardly away from the path oftravel, thus allowing the tires to move into engagement with the washingbrushes 66. As will be appreciated from a review of FlGS. 2-4, as thewashing units are swung forwardly and away from the car, brush units 62will move at right angles to the path of travel away from the path alongwhich the car is moving. This outward movement of brush units 62 isguided by the action of guide rod as it moves through guide brackets 112and 114. The force exerted on brush unit 62 which produces theretracting action is provided by the sliding engagement between plate 68and channel members 94, 96 which parts as previously explained are heldin proper engagement by pins 102, 104 and retaining washers 106, 108.

Thus, it is seen that as washing units 58 and 60 are moved forwardly andoutwardly by the moving car, brushes 66 will be retracted to a positionfor ultimate engagement with the tires when the car reaches the FIG. 6position. Thus, when the car reaches the FIG. 6 position, brushes 66will be in contact with the sidewalls of the tires and biased into suchengagement by the action of spring 92. A thorough washing of the tireswill then take place due to the rotation of the tires on rollers 122,124 while in engagement with the brushes. In the preferred embodiment,the second roller 122 is rotated continuously during the car washingoperation. It will be appreciated that during the tire washing operationthe car itself will be in a stationary position with respect to theconveyor mechanism of the automatic car wash.

The cleaning operation on the front tires will continue for as long asthe car remains in the FIG. 6 position. This period of time will bedetermined by the time it takes the second drive unit 140 on the firstconveyor to move into driving engagement with the left rear wheel of thecar as shown in FIG. 7. As soon as the drive unit 140 moves intoengagement with the rear wheel as shown in FIG. 7, the car will be movedforwardly from the FIG. 6 position to the FIG. 8 position. As the car ismoved forwardly out of the FIG. 6 position, washing units 58, 60 willpivot rearwardly back to the FIG. 2 position by the action of the returnsprings 92. It will be appreciated that as the car moves out of the FIG.6 position, rotating roller 122 will continue to spin the wheels untilthe wheels loose contact with the roller. Guard bar 132 will prevent anypossibility of damage to the tire valve stems due to contact withassembly 74 during this period.

In the FIG. 8 position, the rear tires will become positioned betweenthe wheel spinning rollers 122, 124 and the drive unit 14a of the firstconveyor will move out of engagement with the car tire and the car willthen assume a stationary position with respect to the conveyors.

The rear tires will then be cleaned as they are rotated by rollers 122,124 while the tires are in engagement with the brushes 66 which actionof the washing units 58, 60 with respect to the tires is the same asthat described above with respect to the front tires.

The washing of the rear tires will continue for as long as the carremains in the FIG. 8 position, which period of time will depend on thetime it takes for a drive unit 28 on exit conveyor 12 to move intodriving engagement with the left front tire of the car as shown in FIG.9. As shown in FIG. 9, as soon as the drive unit 28 of the secondconveyor makes contact with the front tire of the car, the car will beagain conveyed in the forward direction, causing the rear wheels to moveforwardly out of the wheel washing station. The car will then beconveyed through the remaining portion of the automatic car washinstallation.

It will be appreciated from the foregoing that it is important that aparticular sequence of engagement of drive units 14 and 28 with thefront and rear tires of the car be maintained so that sufficient dwellperiods are provided for thorough washing of the car tires. Suchsequence of engagement is provided by proper synchronization ofconveyors l0 and 12 as previously explained. In the preferredembodiment, the entrance and exit conveyors l0 and 12 are driven at thesame speed and the spring between drive units 14 on conveyor l0 anddrive units 28 on conveyor 12 are identi cal.

We claim:

1. Wheel washing apparatus for vehicles comprising:

a wheel washing means adapted for washing the wheels of a vehicle whilethe vehicle is in a stationary position at a wheel washing station;

a first conveyor means for conveying the vehicle to the washing stationwhereby the vehicle will assume a first stationary position with thefront wheels thereof positioned for washing by said wheel washing means,said first conveyor means further adapted to further convey the vehicleafter a period of time during which the front wheels are washed by saidwashing means whereby the vehicle will assume a second stationaryposition with the rear wheels thereof positioned for washing by saidwheel washing means; and

a second conveyor means for conveying the vehicle away from the washingstation, said second conveyor means adapted to convey the vehicle aftera period of time during which the rear wheels are washed by said washingmeans.

2. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim I in which said wheelwashing means includes a pair of movable brush units adapted forengagement with the vehicle wheels when the vehicle is in its first andsecond stationary positions; said wheel washing means further includinga wheel spinning means adapted to spin each pair of wheels while inengagement with said brush units.

3. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 2 in which said wheelspinning means is comprised of a pair of rollers between which thewheels come to rest at the wheel washing station, at least one of saidrollers being driven by a source of mechanical power.

4. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 1 in which said wheelwashing means further includes a brush actuating means adapted to movesaid brush units in response to movement of the vehicle by said firstand second conveyor means.

5. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 4 in which said brushactuating means includes a pair of pivotally mounted support arms and awheel engaging assembly mounted on said arms, said wheel engagingassembly adapted for actuation by the vehicle wheels as the vehicle isconveyed by said first and second conveyor means.

6. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 1 in which said firstconveyor means includes a drive unit means adapted for engagement withat least one front wheel of the vehicle to convey it to the washingstation for washing of the front wheels, said drive unit means furtheradapted for subsequent engagement with at least one rear wheel of thevehicle to convey it further along the path of travel for washing of therear wheels.

7. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 6 in which said firstconveyor means includes an inclined transfer plate located at theentrance to the wheel washing station and adapted to insure movement ofthe vehicle into the wheel washing station.

8. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 7 in which said firstconveyor means further includes an inclined over-roll plate located atthe exit of the wheel washing station and adapted to prevent the vehiclefrom rolling through the wheel washing station.

9. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 1 in which said secondconveyor means includes a drive unit means adapted for engagement withat least one front wheel of the vehicle to convey it away from thewashing station after the rear wheels have been washed.

10. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim I in which the movementof said first conveyor means is synchronized with the movement of saidsecond conveyor means.

1 l. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 10 in which said firstand second conveyor means are driven from the same prime mover. 5

I I l I l

1. Wheel washing apparatus for vehicles comprising: a wheel washingmeans adapted for washing the wheels of a vehicle while the vehicle isin a stationary position at a wheel washing station; a first conveyormeans for conveying the vehicle to the washing station whereby thevehicle will assume a first stationary position with the front wheelsthereof positioned for washing by said wheel washing means, said firstconveyor means further adapted to further convey the vehicle after aperiod of time during which the front wheels are washed by said washingmeans whereby the vehicle will assume a second stationary position withthe rear wheels thereof positioned for washing by said wheel washingmeans; and a second conveyor means for conveying the vehicle away fromthe washing station, said second conveyor means adapted to convey thevehicle after a period of time during which the rear wheels are washedby said washing means.
 2. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 1in which said wheel washing means includes a pair of movable brush unitsadapted for engagement with the vehicle wheels when the vehicle is inits first and second stationary positions; said wheel washing meansfurther including a wheel spinning means adapted to spin each pair ofwheels while in engagement with said brush units.
 3. A wheel washingapparatus according to claim 2 in which said wheel spinning means iscomprised of a pair of rollers between which the wheels come to rest atthe wheel washing station, at least one of said rollers being driven bya source of mechanical power.
 4. A wheel washing apparatus according toclaim 1 in which said wheel washing means further includes a brushactuating means adapted to move said brush units in response to movementof the vehicle by said first and second conveyor means.
 5. A wheelwashing apparatus according to claim 4 in which said brush actuatingmeans includes a pair of pivotally mounted support arms and a wheelengaging assembly mounted on said arms, said wheel engaging assemblyadapted for actuation by the vehicle wheels as the vehicle is conveyedby said first and second conveyor means.
 6. A wheel washing apparatusaccording to claim 1 in which said first conveyor means includes a driveunit means adapted for engagement with at least one front wheel of thevehicle to convey it to the washing station for washing of the frontwheels, said drive unit means further adapted for subsequent engagementwith at least one rear wheel of the vehicle to convey it further alongthe path of travel for washing of the rear wheels.
 7. A wheel washingapparatus according to claim 6 in which said first conveyor meansincludes an inclined transfer plate located at the entrance to the wheelwashing station and adapted to insure movement of the vehicle into thewheel washing station.
 8. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 7in which said first conveyor means further includes an inclinedover-roll plate located at the exit of the wheel washing station andadapted to prevent the vehicle from rolling through the wheel washingstation.
 9. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 1 in which saidsecond conveyor means includes a drive unit means adapted for engagementwith at least one front wheel of the vehicle to convey it away from thewashing station after the rear wheels have been washed.
 10. A wheelwashing apparatus according to claim 1 in which the movement of saidfirst conveyor means is synchronized with the movement of said secondconveyor means.
 11. A wheel washing apparatus according to claim 10 inwhich said first and second conveyor means are driven from the sameprime mover.